Kevin's Lego Page


	This is the first book I ever got published. I co-authored with Soren Rolighed, Miguel Agullo, and Hideaki Yabuki. The robots named AT-ST, Super Battle Droid, Go-Rilla and Draigon are my own creations.
	This book is based on the Robot Invention System 2.0 and Ultimate Builders Set LEGO Mindstorms set. At the last minute I put together a Robo-Hominid chapter for this book.
	I developed two LDraw compatible tools for the development of the above books: LPub, for automatically creating building instructions from LDraw files, and LSynth, so our robots could have rubber bands and bendable tubes. Miguel Agullo and I colaborated on this book. Miguel wrote the introduction, MLCAD and final chapters. I wrote the chapters on LSynth, L3P and Pov-Ray, LPub, and the appedix of building instructions for my RIS based Star Wars All Terrain - Scout Transport (AT-ST) seen briefly in Episode V, and Episode VI.
	I had the honor of co-authoring with the great builders Miguel Agullo, Doug Carlson, Mario and Giulio Ferrari, and Hideaki Yabuki on a building instructions book where we got to build without restrictions to a particular LEGO set. We got to take the time to explain the science behind the robots which was a pleasure. Miguel 's design is a variable geometry tracked explorer that carries Vision Command camera. Doug's design is a stair climber. I created a pneumatic adding machine, and a pneumatic catterpillar and introduce a new synchronous pneumatic circuit design technique. Giulio created a Turing machine. Mario created a brick sorter with Artificial Intelligence. Hideaki created an extremely advanced robotic arm.

LEGO CAD Tools I've Authored

	Automates the creation of building instructions from LDraw files
	Synthesizes bendable parts like tubes, electric cables, rubber bands and chains directly into your LDraw files

My Own Creations

	Robo-Hominid - My first successful biped. It carries the RCX, is weight shifting, can walk backwards and forwards, and can turn right or left within its own footprint.
	Star Wars AT-ST - Next Generation weight shifter, with motors centralized and a chain driven lifting mechanism. A much riskier design because of the splindly legs
	LEGO Maniac - The follow-on to AT_ST with an even more compact drive train, plus automamous behavior, and collision aviodance using Infra-Red Proximity Detection. Maniac stands in place until someone walks by, then he plays the "LEGO Mania" jingle used in American commercials. If no one walks by, he randomly walks around to a new location, in hopes that people will walk by and see his sign.
	PneumADDic - Adding/Subtracting machine that performs arithmetic pneumatically. The RCX takes input fromn the 16 key keyboard, and feeds arithmetic operations to the "half-adder" made of LEGO pneumatics, using motorized pneumatic switches. Outputs from the "half-adder" are fed to the RCX through touch sensors. The results are displayed on the RCX's LCD display
	Caterpillar - Pneumatic caterpillar that "walks" by sequentially expanding and contracting its pistons, which makes the segmented body push the feet forward.
	Oscillator - A single piston pneumatic oscillator. You apply pressure and it repeatedly opens and closes.
	PneumaPed - My first successful pneumatic biped.
	CAN (Clague<-Agullo<-Nagata) - I modified a overlpapping footprint biped designed by Miguel Agullo to test an idea I had for using a differential to allow one leg to stride somehat independently of the other foot. Miguel's design was based on designs by that ubiquitous Japanese designer, the great Joe Nagata. My idea was that by driving the feet via a differential, once a foot became non-weight bearing, it could recover to the beginning of stride position without the down foot moving. It worked, and had the effect of increasing the overall stride length.
	FastForward - A follow on to CAN with a better leg/foot geometry. The differential leg drive makes the forward strides longer than the backwards strides, thus the name FastForward.
	Experiments in DSDK based bipeds.
	Another version of my favorite biped of all time, Star Wars AT-ST.
	Super Battle Droid from the Star Wars Episode II movie titled "Attack of the Clones".
	A ficticious evil flying creature from the Jedi Apprentice book series.
	Go-Rilla - The fastest weight shifting biped I've ever made.
	Synchropillar - a pneumatic caterpillar made with a new synchronous pneumatic design technique
	A second generation pneumatic adding machine, which is faster and more reliable than its predecessor
	A sequence of weight shifters based on LEGO micro-motors
	A pneumatic biped made from small pistons
	A pneumatic inchworm (not to scale :^) that has an organic looking walking style
	A LEGO spoof of Dark Helmet from the science fiction comedy Space Balls
	My first pneumatic quadraped that has an advanced pneumatic design.
	My first pneumatic hexapod. My most complex pneumatic design to date.
	My first biped based on the new LEGO MINDSTORMS NXT robotics set.